A Funny :)

Have you read Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes Are High? Good book.

And sage advice :)

Thanks, Jasen!

For Your Pondering

"Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge? Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?" T.S. Eliot

I came across this quote this morning. Interesting, poignant thought.

Last week I crossed one more state off of my list of states I have been to: Florida! I had a wonderful trip with Michelle and Melaina. And Florida is a great place-- Governor Charlie Crist, no income tax, a good percentage of humidity (in Sept at least), and gorgeous coasts-- yep, I could get used to that!

We had a fun-packed vacation with two days at Disneyworld, one day at SeaWorld's Aquatica, one day at Clearwater Beach, and one day of shopping-- perfect vacation mix.

Here are some picture highlights:

Clearwater Beach is just beautiful. The blue, blue water and white sand are great. Little wonder it is ranked America's best beach. We had fun exploring the boardwalk in John's Pass too.

Magic Kingdom was adorably decorated for Halloween. Michelle and Melaina at the entrance.

Epcot is my definite favorito! I loved the country exhibits. And the fireworks show, which definitely helped me compensate for a fireworks-less 4th of July this year.

SeaWorld's Aquatica waterpark is so, so fun! This is us in front of the dolphin tank that has clear waterslides that go through it. If only I wasn't screaming with my eyes shut during that part of the slide, I might have seen them :)

"I look once more, just around the Riverbend." We met Pocahontas, and that song was stuck in my head for the rest of the day :) All part of the Disney spirit.

At the Orlando Airport after just arriving in Florida around midnight. It was late and we were excited.

Epcot took me back to China! Only in this China, I could still have my cell phone-- halelujia! And it smelled better sans stinky tofu.

This just never gets old!

Abundantly Creative

Lately my desire to be like Amy Atlas has been piqued even further (Rach, I blame/credit you for introducing the blog to me first) :) Maybe this is sufficient cause to change my career path? If it means going back to school, yes please :) I've been so happy lately to get to do a couple creative things. First was Amber's bridal shower. I pulled some inspirations from the Amy Atlas site and overall was pleased with how it all came together-- it wasn't exactly what I envisioned, but really does anything ever turn out that way?

Then last weekend, Zan invited me to for a girls' night and taught me how to use fondant. I've wanted to learn for so long. And the chance to learn from Zan, whom I credit with being my first baking teacher way back in Heritage, was even better. Here is our cake that we created. I use the term "cake" loosely becauase it's actually only about 2/5 actual cake.

(that may or may not be a measuring cup serving as a cake prop... Zan's genius idea!)

Mei Guo was my name

Once upon a time I embarked on the adventure of a lifetime and headed to China. I've shared most my Hong Kong adventures-- which was fabulous and my favorite city visited in Asia. The part I didn't get to (and my favorite experience) is when we were invited to lunch at Asia Area President Perkin's home. The view of the bay was incredibly beautiful, but talking to President Perkins and hearing about the Church's work in Asia was even better.

After Hong Kong, we flew to Shanghai and experienced the 2010 World Expo and the downtown area.

Then the study abroad part started. We lived in Xiamen-- an island in southern Fujian province across the bay from Taiwan. We attended Xiamen University, learning about performance measurement and Chinese government history and structure. We also spent nearly every weekend of two months traveling around China with adventures to Nanjing, Suzhou, Guilin, Yanshuo, Tulou, Xi'an, Wuyishan, and Beijing. We had so many fun experiences; I will share some of my favorites through pictures:

China has an amazing history. I thoroughly loved learning about it, yet still have a lot more to discover. We were able to see a lot of the places that served as the government centers including Nanjing and Beijing. (this is at Tiananmen Square)

Go figure there are a whole lot of Chinese people in China. And we stuck out like nobody's business. We got so many requests for pictures that I'm certain if we had charged 10 yuan per picture, we could have funded someone's China trip :)

We took two sleeper train rides through the country and saw beautiful vistas like this rice patty out of our windows for much of it!

Wow. That' s how I would sum up the terra cotta warriors. The portion that has been unearthed is amazing itself, but did you know that this is a mere fraction of what experts believe Emperor Qin Shi Huang's complete tomb consists of? It's incredible to fathom.

These wonders of the world were just as their status indicates-- awe inspiring. The Great Wall of China definitely qualifies. It is so much steeper and taller than I imagined, as well as in much more rugged terrain as it scales very steep hills. It is awesome to imagine how it was built hundreds of years ago-- all 3,000+ miles of it!

Aside from bedbugs (which we unfortunately experienced), cicadas were the insect bane of my existence. They were so prevelent in Xiamen that there was always a constant hum. Luckily, Chinese women have the custom of carrying umbrellas and that was useful to shield the mystery drips from the trees. On their backs is how I wanted to forever remember them :)

China is a beautiful country and one of the most naturally beautiful places I have ever seen is Guilin. It was once underwater, which formed the amazing mountains. We took a cruise down the Li River and got to take in this gorgeousness for 4 incredible hours.

The food was... interesting. We definitely all had bouts with everything that can be categorized as "stomach problems." This is Jennica, Heather C, and I in front of a restaurant-- not an aquarium as you may have thought. Our foot-high ice cream cones is more of a tourist fare on Gulang Yu, but I thought the combo was a good one.

I thought the food merited two pictures. Any guesses to what is on this plate? At first we thought some creature from the sea, but alas, it is a platter of duck tongues. No need to even ask-- heck no I did not try it!

We had some great tongxues (classmates) at Xiamen Da Xue! This is my project team: Talia, Sweety, me, and Juliette. We had a lot of fun outside of class too with movie nights, KTV, and learning Tai Chi.

We literally pretty much lived on the beach. While it's not one you would probably opt to swim in, it was gorgeous and we enjoyed many a walk and tandem bike ride along the boardwalk.

In sum, I am so happy to have had this chance of a lifetime! Who'd have ever thought I would go to China-- not me! My time there definitely broadened my perspective of the world and I have a new appreciation for my Mei Guo life.

Chi Guai (That's Weird)

Day 4: We still have not ever taken a watch with us on any of our adventures (which has been kind of liberating when not stressing about not knowing what time it is), but we’re having the time of our lives. So, today we got into the elevator and a Chinese couple made fun of us thinking we couldn’t understand them and they were right…..about three of us. Sarah turned to them and asked them in Chinese where they were from. :) Their jaws dropped a little bit, it was pretty funny!

Then we walked to the Hong Kong Temple from our hotel. It is closed for cleaning until tomorrow, but it was neat to walk around the grounds and enjoy the courtyard (Jerusalem courtyard-ish feeling). It was a nice 45-minute walk up Waterloo Road. It was neat to see the road change from busy markets to more of a residential and school zone. The temple was beautiful!! It seems different to me than the official church picture-- much smaller and a little different color-- but it is gorgeous. We also saw the stake center/ chapel being built across the street. It is supposed to be done and dedicated within the next couple weeks.

Then we went to a massive monastery with 10,000 Bhudda statues. It was pretty amazing. We walked up about 1,000 steps (again in the humidity). There were so many life-size Bhuddas lining the walkway. Some looked like Satan, some like Dumbledore, some like Magellan, some with very distinct Indian flare. We went to a whole bunch of different courtyards, saw lots of burning incense, gifts of fruit, etc. One room up at the very top had at least 10,000 small Bhuddas just in one room. They were doing construction at the top so we had to go down to hike all the way back up to another area. We also saw a family of monkeys jumping off a hut into a tree (pretty sure this is my first time seeing a monkey not in captivity-- pretty cool). It was HOT! We tried to hike up to a cemetery up at the top of the hill, but it got a little jungly and slippery and muddy. We didn’t see any other tourists at all and thought it would be best to turn around.

There was a mall near the metro stop, so we got McDonalds soft serve ice cream cones. They have never tasted more delicious. We have stopped at home to refresh from the hot day and then our plan is to go see the lights of the city and the light show across the Hong Kong Harbor tonight!

Pictures from the first few days

Hiking down Victoria Peak. Humid.

Foggy view from Victoria Peak.

Heading to church. Seth, me, Sarah, Heather. Had to get a picture before getting all sweaty gross.

Heather and Seth in Kowloon Park (kinda like Central Park)

Hong Kong Harbor from Kowloon side

Me and Seth having a little fun in Vancouver Airport

Whole gang on Vncouver subway. Me, Sarah, Seth, Heather

Seattle was fantastic-- I could totally live there. Seth, me, Sarah near Pike's Place Market.

Nihao from Hong Kong!

Just want to let you know I arrived safely in Hong Kong. We had fantastic stopovers in Seattle and Vancouver with whirlwind tours of both cities. It was a long day. In Seattle we went to Pike's Place Market and in Vancouver we explored the harbor and downtown area for a little bit. We tried to find the Olympic venues, but most were disappointing or not easy enough for us to get to. And I survived the 13-hour flight from Vancouver to Hong Kong :) Actually the flight was fairly productive as I organized 6 years worth of photos plus all my school files! It really has been amazing how well everything has worked out on this trip!

HONG KONG is AMAZING!!!! :) We've had a flurry of activity and experienced what most tourists would only experience in a week. We arrived in Hong Kong about 6:00 am local time. We were able to catch the train to Kowloon (other side of the harbor from Hong Kong where we are staying) and an airport shuttle (that was an adventure) that serendipitously had a stop at a hotel directly across from where we're staying. I was awe-struck at my first sights of Asia. It is very beautiful, green, and HUMID!! I've never sweat so much in my life and my hair is barely shoulder-length since it's curled up so much. It is a complete "mass of humanity" as mom would say :) Definitely high-density population. I'm especially amazed by all the apartment buildings-- they are so tall, but so thin. And dad would love this-- the construction "scaffolding" is all made of bamboo poles strung together. It looks a little precarious to have buildings supported by bamboo, but I guess is very strong.

Saturday morning we checked in, showered, and got cleaned up. Then off for a day of sight-seeing. We ventured down Nathan Road (famous shopping district-- Michelle and Natalie would love, minus the insane humidity) to the Hong Kong harbor. The harbor is beautiful and you can see the tall building Batman jumps off in Dark Knight. We were "surveyed' by some elementary school children practicing their English and they gave us postcards as souvenirs-- so cute! We walked down the Star Walk (HK version of Chinese Grummen Theater walk) and visited the modern art museum (mostly for the air conditioning, but I was excited). We tried a fairly hole-in-the-wall Japanese place for dinner. I have duly noted that "seafood" as an adjective entails a different combination here than it probably would at home, including octopus, eel, and a couple other things I didn't recognize and would probably be better not knowing anyway. On our walk back, we explored the Kowloon Park which is like Central Park, Chinese-style and explored a jade market. A lady tried to rip me off by selling me a fake pearl pendant. Pshh, I know what I'm looking for :) We also made a 7-11 run (luckily there are three per block) to stock up on water. I think it was probably about an hour before I was totally out at about 7:00. Granted, I probably had a total of 6 hours of sleep in the previous two days. Our hard-as-a-board beds couldn't have felt better :)

Today (Sunday) has been amazing! We attended an English branch in Hong Kong in a beautiful church building-- it reminds me of the Manhattan Temple/chapel. As we were on the subway, looking like confused tourists searching our map, a girl approached and asked if we were going to church. She showed up the way :) During Sunday School 4 of our Xiamen group showed up-- they've been here since Thurs and leave tomorrow for the Public Administration conference-- which was fun. After church, a sister invited us to her home for lunch with the other Young Single Adults. Turns out she is the wife of Asia Area President (which area that covers more than half the world's population--India, China, Mongolia, Pakistan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, etc.)! They live in an apartment on the south part of Hong Kong island with a Beautiful view of the bay. We had a fabulous lunch of chicken fajitas (so grateful for familiar food after yesterday!) and met many people from all over the world. We chatted with President Perkins afterward and it turns out he was mission companions with Governor Huntsman (who we're trying to visit while in Beijing) and also gave us a great contact for someone to talk to for a perspective of Asian government relations that will hopefully pan out!

After lunch, we took a taxi to the top of Victoria Peak. Unfortunately it was very foggy, but we could see a small portion of the Hong Kong skyline. There is a mall at the top of the mountain and we enjoyed some great piano entertainment. We took the walking trail down the mountain and it totally felt like we were in a jungle. It was very mystically foggy, jungly, and beautiful. Oh and did I mention the humidity? Yeah, it's hot. Pictures to come, but I must say, they don't capture the majesty and beauty. The trail was really steep, but a fun walk. At the bottom of the mountain, we ended up in a city botanical garden with zoo-like exhibits-- so cool. We made it back to our hotel-- we're getting our bearings.

So, tomorrow we're going to go check out the Temple (our Temple) and then Ten Thousand Bhuddas Temple and do a little more exploring around the area. It has been an AWESOME trip so far! My fears that Asia would be too foreign and inaccessible have been dashed and I'm totally loving it here!

Quick Update

The adventure has officially begun! I am sitting in the Vancouver airport, awaiting an endurance-testing 13-hour flight to Hong Kong :). I hope to be able to post pictures and updates to this blog, but have heard it rumored that blogspot is blocked in China.... we'll see.

As a start, today I left Salt Lake around 7:30 am and arrived in Seattle. I'd never been to Seattle before and my impression of the city is resounding approval! We visited Pike's Place Market and I got to see the live version of the motivational organizational behavior movie I have seen about 3 times. I love outdoor markets like that. After that layover, I had the best 20 minute flight of my life to Vancouver. Vancouver is gorgeous. While I was somewhat disappointed in the city, the airport is fabulous and gorgeous!

PS. Please excuse any grammatical errors. I have now accumulated 2.5 hrs of sleep in 48 hours... all in the pursuit of being able to sleep through this 13 hour confinement :) Wish me luck.

Finishing Up

You know the feeling of being sick of being sick? That's me. Since my typhoid vaccine, I don't know if my immune system was just extra-susceptible, but I think I got the cold I'd been trying to stave off since finals week. At least the snowy weather this morning makes me feel a little less out-of-season.

The up-side to sick days/weeks is cathcing up on stuff... here's the post I began a couple weeks ago:

Whew. So the time period from March 19 until now feels like it lasted 3... maybe 4 weeks yet at the same time seems like years ago. So much has happened!

March 19 began the work on a new campaign. Since then, I also finished up school group projects, participated in the UCMA competition in St. George, took finals, graduated from grad school and celebrated a little, said farewells to so many wonderful friends (only after partying with an over-abundance of nacho cheese and in a castle-- not at the same party), welcomed another "niece" who will also have the nickname Gan, went on the job hunt-- though not diligently enough, finalized China trip plans like getting airfare and visa stuff done, moved home, and made it through a successful GOP convention! Some picture highlights...

MPA Closing Social Ball

Romney love at Amy & Billy's Wedding

Today I read I book that I chose! I've missed that :)

Oh Mr. Sun, Sun, Mr. Golden Sun

Dear St. George:

I am disappointed. Your reputation is being sunny and warm but you are anything but. I have been looking forward to this getaway for weeks so please have great, sunny weather tomorrow. I know it will bring us good luck in Jeopardy! :)

Yours truly,
Megan

P.S. Thank you for only being rainy and not blizzard-like as was the rest of the state on the drive down.

Living Color

Wow, I feel super efficient :) I accomplished #1 on my list yesterday: the Festival of Colors. What a blast! We ended up leaving Provo fairly late and parked pretty far from the temple, but luckily a car who pulled off at the same time we did let us all pile in the back seat. Despite passing several cops, none said anything about 5 of us in the back. We made it just about on time to the temple. We caught the tail-end of the pre-show band and were in the middle of the crowd for the cloud of colors. The downside to the experience? Purple snot-- but I consider this akin to my smurf feet, hands, elbows, and knees after True Blue football-- lasting evidence of the fun :)

The whole time during the festival, I kept thinking that the advertising execs at Wrigley really need to know about this event. Everywhere you looked there were clean smiles like in their commercials. Or maybe the Sony Bravia people could do another super cool ad like the bouncy balls and paint with something like this! Now I have the urge to watch that video... thank goodness for YouTube.

P.S. Ok, I'm back. After fulfilling my craving for the bouncy balls, I discovered Sony is ahead of me and already did a Holi festival ad found here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=LXhh6QdgeGQ&feature=related. I knew I was on to something.

Fun Time

I blogged before about my "fun class" I am taking this semester: landscape design. Well I'm sad to report I have all but dropped out. Too many big projects and stuff going on. So while everyone is handing in their final projects, I really haven't started :) But I did go to class today and while lecture was basically canceled, it was so worth it because it was free flower day again! So for the past hour I've taken a mental health break and arranged what I picked up. I'm feeling a lot better :) Also, since my class was canceled, I fulfilled something on my To-Do list: I sat by the BYU duck pond for the first time. I know, it's far overdue-- like six years. But it was great. While there I also brainstormed a list of things I need to do in the next month in Provo. They include:

• Festival of Colors (no excuses and/or distractions this year)
• JDawgs trip with the group formerly known as Trofast
• Hike the Y-- I'm thinking graduation day
• Find a dress for the MPA ball. Yes, a real ball :) In a castle. Three guesses as to who is planning it
• Trips to the creamery (much improved since there are now more than 3 flavors to choose from)
• Sleepover in the MPA lounge

I'm open to additional suggestions of must-do's before moving out of Happy Valley for the final time.

In other news: caucuses were Tuesday. What a fabulous system and great experience. I was thrilled and enthused by the turnout and get-involved sentiment exhibited by so many! Campaigns are going fast and furiously; but I'm totally loving it. I went to the presentation by General Petraeus at BYU today. I was very impressed and am in awe of what our armed forces do in service for all us Americans. Weeks are flying, final project deadlines approaching too soon, and I graduate in one month minus two days!!!

News Junkie is my middle name

If I had a middle name, that is. But I do love news. I've been catching up tonight on like 4 weeks of Business Week, Fortune, and The Week-- that's what tends to happen with many tasks during the Session. But there have been some notable articles so I figure this is my outlet to share (don't let your eyes glaze over!)

"Bored to Death"

"Boredome may be fatal, a new study says. British researchers analyzed a survey of 7,500 civil servants in London who were asked if they'd felt bored at work. Following up, the researchers found that by April 2009, the workers who'd said they'd been very bored were two and a half times more likely than the non-bored workers to have died of heart problems."
What's scary about this? The fact that it was a civil servant survey (sufficient cause to rethink my line of work?). AND that these researchers had to process 7,500 surveys-- I would not want on that statistics team!

"China's Garlic Bubble Hits the U.S."

"The price of garlic is up 605% from a year ago. Blame a market glut that led China to cut output by half, along with swine flu fear that caused demand for its antibiotic properties to soar. There's no futures market for the bulbous herb, but that didn't stop speculators from buying it up and further driving up prices."
Seriously? Buying up garlic? Why? Where would you put it all? I hope they simultaneously bought stock in breath mint companies.

Random

That word summarizes well the feeling of my life right now. Have you ever stood at the divergence of two paths that could both potentially alter your life course-- but you're not the one making the decision? That's kinda how I feel right now and I can't decide if it's better or worse than being the one posed with the decision. As a person who shies at big life choices, it's kind of strange that I can't bear to wait until I know which path I'll be heading down when I should probably feel relief that I don't have to choose. Anyway, I don't mean to be so cryptic, but stay tuned for updates soon (hopefully!)



Since I'm on the topic of random, here is a quote that is given in the newest BBC version of Emma (love it!! see it.) "The past is a foreign country. They do things differently there." I know several of my last posts have been a little on the nostalgic, sappy side, but again, this quote is very appropos as I look back at my experience at BYU and realize how I'm a completely different person than when I arrived as a freshman. I've thought of all the different roommates, experiences, frustrations, etc. I've had over the past six years and I honestly am grateful for all of them!

And just for a good round-out of random and added visual interest, here is one of my favorite pictures from the 2010 Legislative session. This photographer is much braver than I would be. I know the picture doesn't capture it adequately, but his ladder is poised on the landing of a large set of marble stairs as well as just in front of that gap between the stairrail with another very hard marble floor on the level beneath. I LOVE the capitol.

Sweet Southern Comfort

A while ago I subscribed to the magazine Southern Living in an attempt to "rescue" my SkyMiles from expiring. While the incitement was less than pleasing, I have always loved that magazine and look forward every month to a rekindling of my love for everything charmingly Southern. I must say that my yearning for silver mint julip cups is getting a little ridiculous-- they would just be the most fabulous decoration overflowing with gardenia or azalea blossoms :) I may need to move to the South here in the near future...

Every month there are tantalizing recipes. Today I finally tried Traditional (mama's way) lemon bars. In a word: delicious! Here is the recipe should you want to try it-- I would highly recommend it.

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, divided

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 cup cold butter, cut into pieces

4 large eggs

2 cups granulated sugar

1 tsp. lemon zest

1/3 cup fresh lemon juice

1/2 tsp. baking powder

powdered sugar

1. Preheat over to 350. Line bottom adn sides of a 13x9" pan with aluminum foil or parchment paper, allowing 2 to 3 inches to extend over sides; lightly grease foil

2. Stir together 2 cups flour and 1/2 cup powdered sugar. Cut in butter using a pastry blender or fork until crumbly. Press mixture onto bottom of prepared pan.

3. Bake at 350 for 20 to 25 minutes or until lightly browned

4. Meanwhile, whisk eggs in a large bowl until smooth; whisk in ganulated sugar, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Stir together baking powder and remaining 1/4 cup flour; whisk into egg mixture. Pour mixture over hot baked crust.

5. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes of until filling is set. Let cool in pan on a wire rack 30 minutes. Lift from pan, using foil sides as handles. Cool completely on a wire rack. Remove foil, and cut into bars; sprinkle with powdered sugar.

52 Days til Graduation!!!

I love that my friend Kadi is keeping a countdown.

Yesterday I was talking to my mom while looking through a class catalog.

Me: [clutching my heart] Ugh, it gives me anxiety to think that I won't be in classes anymore!
Mom: Psh, the thought of being in classes is what gives me anxiety.

Story of my life for all those of you who know my embarrassing 1st grade story :)

Pontificating...

I love working at the Legislature. It's so exciting and I have this part of me that being involved in government really makes happy-- if that seems weird, no worries; I don't think my parents get it either.

Yesterday I was sitting in a committee listening to a bill proposed to create a special entity license plate (like the ones you see with a bus or purple heart or BYU logo). It was definitely for a worthy cause. But while the bill was being presented I was thinking 'is this the best way for this organization to garner funds and support? I don't think it is. There are many other strategies that would be much more cost-effective. As the bill sponsor ended, she gave a very compelling (but not convincing) testimony that this is not the best way to help this organization-- funding it would-- but it is something the state can do to help. Then she made the comment: "Should government be the repository for all good ideas? Yes!"

I've been thinking about that statement a lot. Should government? I would say no. It seems private business would be better waters to test. But to what degree is government already that repository? When an inventor comes up with a brilliant idea, he must patent it-- through the government.

I haven't finished thinking about this-- that's part of why I want to record it so I can remember. But if anyone has any comments, please share.

"Be yourself and let the world take notice..."

I'm totally one of those people who "plays a song to death" when it's my favorite. Well my favorite right now is this song from the new version of Fame.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fsIqcyGrgR4&feature=related

It may be that graduation is approaching and I love the message of this song as the class in the movie graduates as well. I find the first lines so true: "Countless hours of learning more. Countless hours of knowing less." One of the ironies of learning-- you actually learn how much you don't know.

The movie is pretty good as well. The performances are amazing and we all know I'm a sucker for a good musical :)

Two things today:

Number 1:

As I'm in my last semester at BYU, I am finally taking the 'fun classes' I have wanted to do my 6 years spent here. I am taking Landscape Design and loving it. The added bonus: Thursday during our break I walk into the hallway and there are buckets with a sign 'Free flowers. Take as many as you want.' Yay. I did and here's what I got... unfortunately I couldn't squeeze the Floral Design class in or it might be a better arrangement. I think my last two flower posts may indicate I'm ready for spring!

Number 2:

Lately it seems a lot of figurative doors have been opening and closing. It actually makes me excited :) My favorite: I am about 90% sure this is where I'll be living this summer....

Xiamen University in China. The MPA program is starting a study abroad program to work with local Chinese governments. This is me jumping up and down inside :) !!!